Chevron Corp. has asked its workers around the globe to reapply for their jobs as part of its cost-cutting program that could terminate up to 15% of the oil major's workforce, an Oct. 7 Reuters article citing unnamed sources said.

Despite having the strongest balance sheet of its peers across the sector, Chevron is in the midst of restructuring its business after oil prices crashed to record lows earlier this year when petroleum demand was sacked by coronavirus-induced shutdowns.

Chevron spokesperson Veronica Flores-Paniagua, in an Oct. 8 email to S&P Global Market Intelligence, said most of the reductions will take place this year, with 700 layoffs in downtown Houston to begin Oct. 23.

Chevron has almost 45,000 employees across the globe, and about 50% in the U.S., Flores-Paniagua said. A 10% to 15% cut would result in the loss of 4,500 to 6,750 positions.

However, through its recently completed acquisition of independent producer Noble Energy Inc., Chevron will increase its number of total employees by 2,200. The status of the Noble employees will be decided in the coming weeks, the Reuters article said, quoting Chevron Chairman and CEO Mike Wirth. Reductions are more likely to occur on the administrative level and where the two companies have overlapping operations, such as in the U.S. Permian Basin, Wirth said.

In the second quarter, Chevron wrote down $5.4 billion, which included $780 million in employee severance costs.

Chevron peer Royal Dutch Shell PLC released its own restructuring plan Sept. 30 that will include laying off about 11% of its workforce, as the company pivots into the clean energy transition. Shell, which employed 83,000 workers worldwide at the end of 2019, according to its annual report, plans to cut up to 9,000 employees through 2022.